The Board of Selectmen is seeking to fill a vacancy on the Youth Commission for a term to expire on June 30, 2020. The Youth Commission is an integral Town Committee that coordinates and implements programs designed to appeal to all Wellesley youth, but has focused programs with children in the Wellesley Middle School and High School. The Youth Commission works with many diverse local organizations and boards to support its mission including the Board of Selectmen, School Committee, Recreation Commission, and Board of Health.

Interested candidates should fill out the volunteer form and make sure to check the “Youth Commission” box. Applicants must be Wellesley residents. Residents with particular skills suited to youth services, recreation, education, health, and diversity are encouraged to apply. The application period will be open until February 16, 2018.

SPONSORED POST: Young ladies and gentlemen of Wellesley, the one and only Boston Assemblies requests the pleasure of your company at the Italo-American Club, where for over thirty years the youth of Wellesley have learned manners, proper introductions, and the social niceties of traditional dances such as the waltz and foxtrot.

Founder and certified etiquette consultant and dance professional Susan Cole, for one, couldn’t be more excited about returning to a place that has always meant so much to her. “If I could let families know only two things, it’s first of all how much I love doing this. Teaching dance and etiquette is my business, but it’s also my fun. I have always loved it. The second thing is how deeply committed I am to Wellesley, it’s a place I look forward to coming back to time after time.”

Cole cites her vast experience and continuous revamping of her curriculum as the secrets to her success. She says that one of the best parts of her class is knowing that as students learn and practice social etiquette, they are instilled with confidence, sensitivity, grace, and poise in social situations, now and in the future. “No matter the time period, parents are always aware that courtesy, kindness and respect are among the most overlooked elements of achieving success,” she says.

In response to this awareness, Boston Assemblies offers a fresh and fun approach to presenting the principles of etiquette. This approach, combined with the in-depth experience of the teachers, is what sets the classes apart. Boston Assemblies will hold classes at the Italo-American Club, located at 74 Pleasant St., opposite Sprague Elementary School. Registration is open for Fall 2018 classes for Grade 5. Sign up now — Boston Assemblies Social Dance is a standout childhood memory!

Additional classes available:

Ken Kay, CEO of education consulting firm EdLeader21, gave a presentation earlier this month at Wellesley High School, “Preparing Students for Their 21st Century Lives.”

In collaboration with the Wellesley Public Schools (WPS), the Wellesley Education Foundation (WEF) brought Ken Kay, CEO of education consulting firm EdLeader21 to give a presentation earlier this month at Wellesley High School, “Preparing Students for Their 21st Century Lives.” The presentation focused on what Kay calls the 4Cs — Creativity, Communication, Collaboration, and Critical thinking — and how to integrate them into the curriculum so that Wellesley students have the tools to succeed in the 21st century.

About 250 community members attended the presentation. It wasn’t a sit back and listen to the speaker drone on kind of meeting. Kay ran things collaboratively, because that’s how he rolls. He asked audience members what they thought the 4Cs should mean for Wellesley students, and the audience wasn’t shy, raising hands and giving opinions in strong, confident voices. It was just another meeting for this crowd of Wellesley parents, a group of seasoned professionals used to collaborating at work and changing with the times, who want their kids to be able to do the same.

How EdLeader21 gets paid

EdLeader21’s fees are expected to run upward of $25,000. That breaks down to $10k for Kay’s work with the district on January 22, and approximately $15,000 for facilitation of three upcoming meetings. Not all the money is coming out of the school budget. Dr. Lussier said, “Ken was here for a full day of work with the district on 1/22. He worked with both the Academic Council (all district administrators) along with leading the keynote for parents. The cost for the day was $10,000. That cost was paid for by a grant from the Wellesley Education Foundation.”

Susan Ryan, WEF Co-President said, “WEF is pleased to have had the opportunity to fund this opportunity for parents and community members to hear about 21st century learning. WEF has been prioritizing innovative educational approaches for the last several years, helping to fund several other initiatives such as the Evolutions program at the Wellesley High School, Project-Based Learning at the elementary schools, and now Ken Kay and Edleader21.”

In addition to the work Kay did on January 22, Dr. Lussier said that Wellesley is paying EdLeader21 “Approximately $15,000 for facilitation of three separate meetings. We are still in the process of raising the funds from multiple sources to defray this cost.” Kay, who said he came late in life to the education field and described himself as “a recovering lawyer,” also appeared as they keynote speaker on the WPS Professional Development Day in November and worked with staff during the day’s afternoon sessions.

Profile of a Graduate, Task Force

Implementation into the curriculum of the 4Cs is one part of the long-term educational goals of the district. Another part seeks community involvement in defining a Profile of a Graduate (POG). WPS wants to put together a clearly defined idea of what the community wants a graduate to know and be able to do. To that end, WPS is seeking interested community members to join a POG Task Force – in particular, students, graduates, parents, educators, as well as leaders from local businesses and higher ed institutions. The “…Profile of a Graduate Task Force will be comprised of 50 community members, students, and staff. We are in the process of assembling the group,” Dr. Lussier said. Some of this work has already begun by WPS education professionals in partnership with EdLeader21 during discussions on integrating the 4Cs into education. That preliminary work is expected to help inform the ideas of a Profile of a Graduate.

The Task Force will meet three times over the course of the spring to help build Wellesley’s POG and will seek additional input before making a recommendation to the School Committee by the end of this school year. The sessions will be facilitated by Ken Kay. Working with Kay and Drs. David Lussier and Joan Dabrowski, Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning, the Task Force will meet from 4:00 – 7:30 pm on Wednesday, February 7; Wednesday, March 7; Tuesday, May 1.

But wait, there’s more

“After we complete our three task force meetings, we will have a final draft of Wellesley’s Profile of a Graduate that will be presented to the School Committee. This POG definition will lay the groundwork for the next round of strategic planning. We look forward to the next stage of WPS-EdLeader21 partnership as we begin the important work of building Wellesley’s Profile of a Graduate that reflects our community’s values and aspirations. The voices of our community and staff will be critical in charting this course for the future together,” Dr. Lussier said.

As Fire Chief, I am pleased to announce that the Wellesley Fire Department has earned two grants that will help augment the department’s ongoing Fire Safety Education. These grants will support our goal to keep our most vulnerable in our community; children to seniors safe as possible with valuable fire and life safety education.

On Behalf of the Fire Department, I received a letter from Governor Baker congratulating our department on being awarded grants from the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services of $4,308 for its S.A.F.E. Program and an additional $2,615 for its Senior S.A.F.E. Program. We also appreciate the legislative support for the SAFE and Senior SAFE grant programs from our Representative Alice Peisch, Senator Cynthia Creem, and Senator Richard Ross.

The S.A.F.E. Program is a state initiative designed to provide resources to local fire departments to conduct fire and life safety education programs for children in kindergarten through 12th grade. The program aims to educate students to recognize fire risks and teach key safety behaviors that should be used anytime a child comes into contact with a fire or other types of emergencies. A few of the most notable SAFE programs are the Wellesley Fire Youth Rescuer Summer Program, July Jubilation, and the Fire Prevention week in the schools.

Senior S.A.F.E. is a similar program that was created to support fire safety education specifically for older adults, who are most at risk of dying in a fire in Massachusetts. The program builds on the success of the original S.A.F.E. program and helps forge a connection between fire departments and a variety of senior support agencies working in their communities. Two of the most notable Senior SAFE programs are the Senior Citizens Thanksgiving Dinner / Fire Prevention program and the Senior Pancake Breakfast Senior Safety Presentation.

S.A.F.E. and Senior S.A.F.E. are key grant programs that have made a difference in our community. I am very proud of all of our personnel that support these programs and many attend these community events off duty. The primary Fire Prevention Educators are Lt Paul Delaney and Lt Matt Corda who are amazing at working so creatively to engage with residents. Lt Delaney did a great job again this year applying for the safety education grants, and I’m very pleased that our fire and life safety education programs continue to be augmented by grant funding.

Important Information Regarding Kindergarten Registration for the 2018-19 School Year:

Kindergarten registration will begin on January 31, 2018 for school year 2018-19. Please note that the parent(s) of any Kindergarten eligible student should register with the Wellesley Public Schools even if they are interested in deferring their child’s attendance for one school year. These written requests will allow us to plan more effectively for space and staffing needs for the incoming and future cohorts of Kindergarten students. Additionally, this information will help us create more transparency and consistency around the admissions process moving forward.